Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How different diets affect blood sugar and fat in lean
By Keller, Claudia et al.·Published in BMC veterinary research·2017·Institute of Animal Nutrition·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Metabolic response to three different diets in lean cats and cats predisposed to overweight.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A study looked at how different diets affected blood sugar and fat levels in lean cats and those prone to becoming overweight. It found that cats at risk for obesity had lower insulin levels but higher leptin levels compared to lean cats. The high-carbohydrate diet caused the highest insulin levels, suggesting it might not be the best choice for cats that could gain weight. However, even cats with a genetic tendency to be overweight can improve their insulin sensitivity if they lose weight.
People also search for: cat diet for weight loss · high-protein diet for cats · insulin levels in overweight cats
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The existence of a genetic predisposition to obesity is commonly recognized in humans and rodents. Recently, a link between genetics and overweight was shown in cats. The goal of this study was to identify the effect of diet composition on plasma levels of glucose, insulin, free fatty acids and triglycerides in cats receiving different diets (high-carbohydrate, high-fat and high-protein diets). RESULTS: Insulin and leptin concentrations were significantly correlated with phenotype. Insulin levels were lower, whereas leptin levels were higher in cats predisposed to overweight. The other blood parameters were not correlated with phenotype. Intake of the high-carbohydrate diet resulted in higher insulin concentrations compared with the two other diets. Insulin levels were within the values described for non-obese cats in previous studies. CONCLUSIONS: There was no difference in metabolic response between the two groups. As the high-carbohydrate diet led to the highest insulin blood concentrations, it might be useful to avoid such diets in cats predisposed to overweight. In addition, even cats with genetically linked obesity can regain insulin sensitivity after weight loss.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28629451/